Bound By Business
by rockrose
Summary: Rory and Logan are dating, but neither of their families want them to be together. Rory's family takes matters into their own hands, making sure she ends up with a different rich blond boy...
1. Dropping the Bomb

AN: My timeline is going to be different than the shows. Please just go with it. The yacht thing didn't happen at the end of the school year, it happened before… so just mentally move everything on the show back a few months. I know, it's a pain- but hey, it's fan fiction, and we can do whatever we want in these stories. I'm really not too sure about this fic. Let me know what you think.

* * *

Rory Gilmore looked in the mirror and finished putting her hair up.

"You look gorgeous." Logan told her, nuzzling her neck.

"Why thank you, kind sir." She teased, giving him a quick kiss.

"Do you have to go?" He asked, trying to pull her down onto his bed.

"Yes. You know every Friday night I have dinner with my grandparents. I'll meet you at the pub afterwards, ok?"

With that being said she gave him one more quick kiss before walking out the door to the parking lot.

She got in her car and started the drive to Hartford, thinking about their relationship.

She and Logan had been dating exclusively for two months. Neither of their families were thrilled with the relationship. At first, her grandparents had been thrilled with the match. Then, the whole yacht incident happened. Somehow, after years of disagreeing with each other on every possible point, her mother and grandparents came to an agreement: Rory and Logan should not be together.

Since then, they used every opportunity to pull the couple apart. Her grandparents Francine Hayden invite her for a luncheon, where she sung the praises of Harvard and Princeton, encouraging her to transfer. She even mentioned Oxford. Her dad offered her a town house or a new car if she transferred.

Emily began to throw parties inviting students from other Ivy League schools. She had been tricked into numerous dates. The kicker came when Lorelai defended Emily's actions; in fact, she even started helping Emily pick out young men from good families to "court" Rory. Rory had just about had enough of it all. But she kept her mouth shut: After all, her family paid for school.

She pulled up to the Gilmore mansion, and got out of the car. She noticed several other cars in the drive. She walked up and rang the bell. _'May as well get this over with quickly…'_

The maid of the week opened the door, allowing Rory entrance. "Everyone is in the sitting room." She informed Rory, taking her jacket.

"Thanks."

She walked into the room, surprised to see so many people.

"Hello Rory, how are you?" Francine Hayden asked, standing up and walking over to kiss her on the cheek.

"I'm well, and you?" She asked warily, putting on her society smile. It was the smile she had perfected at the numerous parties and galas she went to with Logan.

"Wonderful."

"Umm, grandma, what's going on?" Rory asked, glancing around.

Her father and grandmother Hayden were there, along with Luke and her mother. What surprised her was that there were also three other people there. One was an older man, her grandfather's age. Then there was a couple. There was something vaguely familiar about the man, but she couldn't place it.

Normally, she could smell a set up a mile away, but there was no one there her age. That left her feeling very uneasy.

"Would you like a drink Rory?" Her grandfather asked as she sat down.

She nodded. "Yes please." She had a feeling something was very, very wrong.

Her grandmother smiled. "We're just waiting on one other person, and then we'll get right to business."

'_Business?'_ "Oh, if this is business, I don't want to intrude." Rory insisted, wishing to leave.

"Nonsense." Her grandfather replied, handing her the drink. "Now let me introduce you to Janlan, and-"

Before he could say anything else the door bell rang, and soon a young man walked in the room. He was about her age. He had blonde hair, and blue eyes…

"Tristan?"

"Rory?"

They looked at each other in shock.

The strange man sitting beside the woman smiled. "Wonderful, you two remember each other!"

"Sit down beside Rory Tristan." The woman ordered as he gave her a kiss on the cheek.

Tristan sat beside Rory, a look of confusion on his face. She shrugged at him, whispering, "I don't know any more than you do."

He nodded.

There was a silence, and then her grandfather cleared his throat.

"Rory, you already know Tristan. This is his father, Edward, and his mother, Olivia. This is his grandfather, Janlan." Richard told her, making the introductions.

"Nice to meet you." She smiled at them.

Edward spoke up. "Tristan, you remember the Gilmores. This is their daughter, Lorelai, and her fiancé, Luke. That is Rory's father, Christopher, and his mother, Francine."

Tristan smiled a fake smile, "Nice to meet you."

Tristan and Rory shared another confused look. Something more than just being set up was wrong. Very, very wrong. There was just something in the atmosphere.

"Let's get down to business, shall we?" Janlan said, looking around the room.

"What's going on gramps?" Tristan asked.

Janlan pulled out several stacks of papers, handing them to each person in the room. When Tristan and Rory got their papers they looked at each other in shock.

"What is this?" Rory asked, her eyes open wide. There was no way this was what she thought it was.

"Rory, Tristan, you two are getting married." Janlan told them.

They looked up, and were met with nods of affirmation across the room.


	2. Accusations

AN: Thank you guys so much for all the reviews! This is going to be a Trory. I had a hard time finding a Trory I wanted to write. If you were rooting for a Rogan, I'm sorry. I do have a Rogan, it's called Solutions. Anyways, I wasn't sure if I should continue or not, but you guys' reviews totally wowed me! Thanks so much! I wrote this rather quickly, so let me know what you think!

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Chapter 2

Tristan sat still. Very, very still. He wasn't sure how to react. Once he remembered to breath, he stood up and began to pace. Back and forth, back and forth. No one in the room was saying anything. They wanted to see how Rory and Tristan would react.

Tristan had been in love with Rory in high school. When he got shipped off to military school he wrote her several letters. Never once did he send any of them to her. Sometime during his time in North Carolina, he got over Rory Gilmore. Yes, he would always think of her as the paragon of all women, but he didn't pine over her.

Over the years he allowed his thoughts to drift to her time and again, wondering how she was. He assumed she was in Harvard, well on her way to taking the world of journalism by storm. Now here he stood, pacing back and forth in her grandparent's home, moment's after being told he was to marry her. If only she didn't hate him.

-GG-

Rory looked at everyone as if they were crazy. She knew they hated Logan. Not just dislike, but a real, true, deep set hate. But that was ok; his family felt the same way towards her. But still, she never thought they hated their relationship enough to sign her over to some guy.

She looked up and realized everyone was waiting on one of them to speak. The shock began to lessen, and she felt the temporary immobility lift.

"What?" She hissed, glaring around the room.

Tristan stopped mid pace to look at her as she addressed the elders.

"You're to be married, dear." Emily told her, smiling.

"No." Came Rory's automatic reply.

"We all feel it's best for you. Both of you." Olivia said, smiling as if they were talking about draperies and not marriage.

"I think I know what's best for me." Rory retorted, her manners practically sprouting wings and flying out the window.

Lorelai snorted.

"Do you have something to say mom? Cause really, if you do, just say it. It's not like you have hesitated to pass judgment on my choices the past few months, why start hesitating now?" Rory folded her arms, glaring at her mother.

The once wonderfully strong relationship between Lorelai and Rory had dwindled to strained coffee dates at Luke's every so often and uncomfortable Friday night dinners. Of course, there were often screaming matches over the phone. The strain started with the whole Dean incident, and worsened until Logan came into the picture. Things became a catastrophe from there.

"First, of course I've said things about your choices. They're stupid choices! And no, you obviously don't know what's best for yourself! Otherwise you wouldn't be on probation!"

Rory felt anger course through her veins. "I make stupid choices?" She asked, standing up.

"Yeah, you do." Lorelai half yelled, also standing up.

"Well at least I didn't get pregnant at 16!" The words flew out of Rory's mouth before she realized what she was saying.

Everyone in the room's jaws fell. Their eyes widened.

"Rory, Lorelai, really-" Richard tried to interrupt.

"No dad, this is between me and Rory, stay out of it!" Lorelai yelled, placing her hands on her hips. "God Rory, you would never act like this if you weren't with Logan!"

Rory crossed her arms. "What has Logan ever done? Honestly, what has he ever done to deserve this?"

"He got you arrested!"

"IT WAS MY IDEA! MINE! MINE, ALL MINE!" Rory screamed. She had been listening to everyone blame Logan ever since they were arrested, and she was sick of it. No one understood that it was her idea, no matter how many times she would try to explain it to them.

"YOU WOULD NEVER HAVE DONE IT BEFORE YOU MET HIM!" Lorelai screamed back.

"GIRLS! ENOUGH! We have company!" Richard exclaimed, standing up and separating the two.

Lorelai huffed and returned to her seat, while Rory went to the bar and poured herself a strong drink.

"You're underage." Lorelai called over to her, smirking.

"If I'm old enough to be sold to the highest bidder, I'm old enough to drink." Rory retorted.

Tristan sat back down, placing his head in his hands. Rory had changed. A lot. She was on probation. She was obviously dating someone her family didn't approve of. And she was fighting with Lorelai.

"Rory dear," Olivia said, smiling at her, "We understand you've made some mistakes recently. Marriage is simply the best way to rectify them. It will give you balance, stability."

Rory shook her head, feeling sick. "I need to leave." She whispered, looking across the room. No one was on her side. Tristan probably was, but then again he was in the same situation she was.

She hurriedly grabbed her purse and a stack of the documents and left, not stopping to get her coat. She sped all the way back to Yale.

-GG-

When she got to Yale she went strait to the pub where she was to meet up with Logan, Colin, and Finn. She walked strait over to their table.

She sat down, not saying a word.

The guys all glanced at each other.

"What's wrong Ace?" Logan asked her, putting an arm around her shoulders.

She handed him the papers, still not speaking.

Logan took the papers, skimming them over. "Shit."

Colin and Finn looked him, obviously curious. Logan handed Rory his drink. "You need this more than I do." He told her, not able to say anything else yet.

Colin took the papers from Logan, his eyes widening when he realized just what exactly it was that he held in his hands. Finn peered over his shoulder, his jaw dropping when he figured out the gist of the papers. He signaled a waiter.

"We need alcohol. Lot's of alcohol. Bring us three rounds to start. Don't let us run out."

Rory nodded. "Alcohol sounds good."

-GG-

Tristan left the Gilmore's soon after Rory, a stack of papers in hand. They gave him Rory's number and address before he left. He needed to go home and think. He was going to have a lawyer look over the documents the next day, to inform him of his options. Until then, he just needed to think.


	3. Phone Calls

AN: Thank you all for the reviews! I love them! Sorry it took so long, I got sidetracked. Anyways, let me know what you think. The next chapter should be out much sooner than this one!

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Chapter 3 

Rory woke up, and within seconds wished she didn't. Her head pounded. Her body felt new levels of pain never before achieved. Her mouth was dry, and her eye sight was blurry.

"Ace, you awake?" A whispering Logan asked.

"Ughhh…" She muttered, trying not to move.

"Ace, your phone has been going off for twenty minutes. Come on, wake up." He urged, rolling over.

She pulled a pillow over her head and ignored him, going back to sleep.

-GG-

Tristan took a deep breath and dialed the number his grandfather gave him.

"Hello, Richard Gilmore's office, who may I ask is calling?" The secretary on the other end of the line asked him.

"This is Tristan DuGrey." He replied, tapping his fingers lightly against the table top.

"Tristan! How are you?" Richard asked once he came on the line.

"I'm doing fine Richard, and yourself?" He asked, rolling his eyes. He just had an arranged marriage set up for him, how did he think he was?

"Wonderful. Emily and I are very excited about the upcoming wedding. Now what can I do for you?"

Tristan shook his head and clenched his fists. If he had anything to say about it, there would be no wedding. Rory obviously didn't want to marry him, and he personally didn't want to be stuck the rest of his life with someone who hated him. "I was wondering if I could have Rory's number. There are a few things I need to discuss with her."

-GG-

An hour later Rory was awake and showered. She was back in her room, feeling miserable. She hated the things she said to her mother the night before. But still, she hated the way her mother had been treating her. She and Logan were in an adult relationship, but no one seemed to understand that.

She reached up and grabbed her phone, debating calling her mom. She started to dial, then hung up. As much as she regretted the comment she made about her mom getting pregnant at 16, her mom still arranged her marriage. That was unforgivable.

-GG-

Tristan picked up the phone, looking at it. He needed to call Rory. He didn't want to be stuck in a loveless marriage anymore than she did. At one time in his life, he would have been thanking his lucky stars and whatever higher power he could that she was the one he was stuck in this mess with, but no more.

She had obviously changed. The girl he loved in high school would never have treated her mother like she did. She obviously wasn't the Rory he remembered. People changed over the course of five years. He knew he certainly did. He grew up and became a man. Rory seemed to have grown into a spoiled debutante.

He stayed up most of the night before and decided that they would need to see a lawyer together. They needed to find out how iron clad their families had made this. Knowing the DuGrey's and the Gilmore's, it was probably pointless, but at least they would try.

He quickly dialed her number, listening to it ring.

"Hello?" Rory answered, slightly distracted by a book.

"Rory? This is Tristan."

She set her book down and frowned. "Um, hey. What's, I mean, why, um, how are you?" She stuttered, unsure of what to say to her sort of fiancé.

He laughed slightly. "Listen, I'm calling because I think we should meet up over coffee or something. Talk about this thing."

She thought for a minute. "Yeah, you're probably right. When and where?"

"There's a coffee shop near Yale that I know of, Toffee's. Say an hour?"

"Ok, I'll see you then. Bye."

"Bye."

-GG-

An hour later Rory walked inside Toffee's and looked around. Spotting Tristan she walked over to his table, smiling slightly when she saw that he already had a coffee waiting for her.

"Thanks" She said, taking a long sip.

"You're welcome. I remember you used to drink coffee like alcoholics drink liquor, so I figured that a coffee would be a good way to start out a not so good meeting." He told her, watching her.

She nodded. "Yeah. So…"

In all honesty, she had no idea what to say to him. Should she start out with 'Hey, how have you been the past five years?' or go on to 'So… we're engaged.'

He appeared to be having the same problem. "So…"

Finally, he shook his head. "Listen, we're both obviously two very different people from when we used to know each other. I don't think either of us particularly likes this situation, so I think we need to work together." He told her, watching her reaction. In truth, he knew nothing about this gorgeous creature with the captivating blue eyes that was sitting in front of him.

Sure, he knew her name, her old nickname, and that she was smart. He knew she used to be closer to her mother than anything. He knew the old Rory. Tristan would be the first to admit that he knew nothing about the new her.

She looked at him, nodding as he talked. No, he was right. She certainly didn't like their situation. "I guess you're right. We should work together."

"Good. Now, there are a few ways we could go about this."

"I'm listening." She told him, taking another long drink of coffee.

Tristan fiddled with his coffee cup. "I think we should go to a lawyer."

"I completely agree. I actually had a friend that's majoring in law look over the documents… but he doesn't think there's much hope." She said, referring to Colin's advice the night before.

"That's not very encouraging." Tristan sighed, frowning.

Rory smiled sympathetically. "I know how you feel. He said he'll talk to his dad for me… show him the papers. He actually has my copy now. He said his dad will help me as much as he can."

"I actually was going to go to my lawyer's today and drop the documents off. Do you want to handle this together or separately?"

Rory paused. On one hand, she could handle this alone and try to lead as normal a life as possible. On the other hand, he was every bit as involved in the situation as she was.

"Together." The words left her mouth before she had even completely made up her mind.

"Good. Who's the lawyer?" Tristan asked her. He was glad she agreed with him. He thought things would be much easier if they were in complete agreement on everything. They were in this situation together.

"My friend Colin's dad... Andrew McCrae."

Tristan raised his eyebrows. Andrew McCrae was one of the most prominent divorce lawyers in Connecticut. "It's good to have friends in high places, I guess. Can you make the appointment?"

She nodded, pulling out her cell phone and dialing the number Colin gave her. She looked up at him as she waited for the other line to pick up. "Colin said his dad can probably squeeze me in today. Is that okay?"

Tristan smiled. "The sooner we get this started, the sooner we're both free." He told her, wanting out of the mess.


	4. Lawyers & Such

**AN:** I realized I left some things very unclear, so I wanted to clear a few things up with this chapter. That's why this is done so fast.

**ShotswithMrsKim:** Tristan's thing isn't so much with Rory being mad at her mom... it's in the changes he notices in her. When he looks at her, he see's more of the Chilton him than Rory. Tristan has grown up a lot (That will become more evident as time goes on), and at this point in Rory's life, it seem's like her maturity level is going down. You'll see why more in the next chapter. As for Rory and Lorelai... well, they both have some growing up to do in this fic. Tristan will help.

**flowersinthespringtime:** They can't exactly take them to the alter with shotguns, but they can do other things to ensure that the couple gets married... read on and you'll see what I mean.

**rish:** Thank you!

**Photoboothromance:** Thanks for letting me know you're still reading! I appreciate it!

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Chapter 4

They walked into the lawyer's office together, both more than nervous. They each tried to keep their faces blank, not wanting to clue the other into their inner freak outs.

Rory walked over to the receptionist and told her who she was.

"He'll be with you in just a few minutes." Sally, the receptionist told her.

Rory went and sat down beside Tristan. Neither said a word to the other.

After ten minutes of silence Sally told them, "Mr. McCrae will see you now."

She ushered them inside the office, where they shook hands with Andrew McCrae.

"It's nice to meet you sir." She told him, shaking his hand, "Colin has wonderful things to say about you."

Andrew laughed at that. "I'm not too sure about that, but thank you Miss Gilmore." He looked over at Tristan.

"Tristan DuGrey." Tristan said, also shaking Andrew's hand.

"It's nice to meet the both of you. It's just unfortunate it had to be under these circumstances." He told them, sitting down while they did the same.

"Now, Colin gave me the papers last night, and asked that I personally look this over as a favor to him. I must say, your families both seem rather… adamant about this match." He said, looking across his desk at the two.

Rory nodded. "Yes, both our families feel this is for the best, however we don't agree."

Andrew nodded. "Yes, yes, I can see why. Now, I must tell you, while I understand that you're both hopeful to get out of this situation, there doesn't seem to be much, well, you simply don't have a lot of options. Your families both know what they're doing legally. You have a little room to maneuver, but very, very little." He informed them, watching as their faces both fell.

Tristan recovered first. "You said we do have a little maneuvering room. What exactly do you mean?"

"Well, first, let me explain exactly what this document says. Basically, if the two of you do not marry within the next six months, you both lose your trust funds and inheritances. Also, Miss Gilmore, you will lose all your financial backing for school. In the case of a separation, divorce, or annulment, you both forfeit everything." Andrew told them, looking at each of them as he spoke to them.

Rory bit her lip. They sure knew how to hit her where it hurt. All she did was steal one lousy yacht and date a guy that no one wanted her to be with. Now, either she married the former bane of her existence, or she lost everything. The money wouldn't be so hard to live without. It was the threat of being left with no money for school that got her, and her family knew it.

Tristan shook his head. He didn't so much need the money. He would be okay without it, but he knew he could never turn his back on his family. Rory may not care about the scandal or how her family was perceived, but he learned long ago that hurting his family only hurt himself in the long run. He grew up and changed since he had been send to military school so very long ago. He didn't want to cause another rift in his family. He almost laughed aloud at the irony of the situation. It almost seemed as if he and Rory had completely changed perspectives over the years.

"You said there was some room to maneuver though, right?" Rory asked hopefully, breaking into his thoughts.

Andrew sighed. "I'm afraid that the maneuvering is small, and doesn't affect the marriage itself. There are certain small things that can be changed though."

"Such as?" Tristan questioned, now intrigued.

"Your families both want you to be a major society couple, a very smart business move on their end. Basically, things such as how involved in things you are, and how involved in your families you are can be changed. I've had my secretary draw up a copy of items that you can change. You can go over it together and get back to me on it."

"Thank you." Rory told him, standing up with Tristan and taking the papers Andrew offered.

"We'll get back to you soon." Tristan told him, shaking his hand again before walking out the door with Rory.

-GG-

Rory and Tristan went to a small café where they ordered lunch and began to look over the terms of the contract that they would be able to change.

"I can not believe them!" Rory huffed, shaking her head.

"Well… they certainly are thorough." Tristan commented lightly.

"They not only want to dictate who we marry, but they want to dictate our marriage! Look at their terms! Throw six major functions a year, attend four a month, go to family dinners, one week with your family, and one week with mine! They're even dictating our vacationing and holidays and children's birthday parties!" She said heatedly, smacking the table for punctuation.

"Woah, woah, woah. Calm down!" Tristan said, throwing his hands in front of him in a sign of peace. "Mr. McCrae said we can negotiate all that. Now, let's talk about something else."

"Like what? The weather? Cause that's oh so important to me right now." Rory sarcastically retorted, rolling her eyes.

Tristan sighed. The girl was seriously trying his patience. "Nooo… how about let's talk about ourselves? Get to know each other. After all, we are spending the rest of our lives together."

Rory narrowed her eyes and crossed her arms, finally relenting. "Fine."

She certainly wasn't making this easy on him. "Okay, why don't you start out by telling me what's going on with you and your mom?" He asked, watching as her expression darkened.


	5. Realizations

Chapter 5

"What?" Rory asked him, glaring.

Tristan knew he obviously hit a nerve. Her face had darkened and her tone was biting. Her eyes were narrowed into a fiery glare. He took a breath, letting it out slowly, and folded his arms on the table, leaning forward slightly.

"Look, I'm just saying we need to get to know each other. There's obviously something going on with you and your mom. Tell me about it."

Rory looked down at her hands. She wanted to be angry with him. But somehow… somehow she was having trouble summoning that anger. She wanted to open up… tell him her side of things. No one seemed to listen to her side anymore. Still, she was silent.

Tristan leaned over and took her hands and put his own over them, caressing them softly. "Come on, Mary, maybe I can help."

The second she heard her old nickname her head shot up and she met his gaze. "My name is Rory. After all this time, I still can't believe you don't remember it." She hissed, trying to pull her hands away.

He held onto her hands, not letting her take them away. He wasn't holding them so tight that he was hurting her; he just wasn't letting her run away. "I just want to know what happened to ruin your relationship with your mother. That's all. I won't judge you; I promise." He swore, speaking softly.

While he generally wasn't one for long heart to hearts and in depth analysis of things, he knew this was something huge going on in Rory's life. He also knew that there would be no loop holes found in the contracts; she would become his wife. Since he was going to be married to her, he figured he should at least help her out with this. He had a feeling that not only would it do her a world of good, but it would also make _his_ life much easier.

Rory glared at him. "You're right, you _won't_ judge me! You know nothing about me. It is none of your damn business."

He let go of her hands. "Rory," He said slowly, holding onto his temper. Lord, how this one girl was always able to try his patience faster than anyone he ever knew. "This is my business. We're getting married, whether we like it or not. I'm not much more thrilled than you are to be in this situation, but I do think we should at least be honest with each other."

Rory snorted in frustration. "Like you're one to talk. You never got along with your parents, anyway."

Tristan took a deep breath, and then let it out. He counted backwards from ten silently before leaning across the table yet again. "Listen, you say I know nothing about you; well, that's true. But don't think for a second you know anything about me, sweetheart, because you've got another thought coming."

"No, that's not true. I know you got sent away to military school, if your relationship with your parents was so great, then why in the hell were you sent away?" She shot back at him, her eyes never wavering from his.

"Get this strait Mary. I was a 16 year old punk. I thought the only thing in life was girls. I got into some trouble because I was stupid and didn't listen to anyone. At least, no one worth listening to. My father was right in sending me to military school. It did a world of good. So don't think you know anything about me, either."

Rory sat back, dumbfounded. She had grown used to her wall she put up around others. Sure, her family members and some of her friends would yell at her about her choices, but no one actually affected her the way his words just did.

She sat back, an unsure expression on her face as she contemplated his words. He had changed. Really, truly, completely changed. He had his life in order, and here she was, the same age Tristan was, and a mess. She suddenly felt like everything was out of her control.

She knew she had screwed up. She had no one to blame but herself. Somehow she had managed to alienate most of her friends and her entire family. She couldn't remember the last time she had been to Stars Hollow, much less to her mom's house.

When Rory realized Tristan was waiting for a response of some sort, she shook her head, willing the tears to stay away. "Sorry. I'm so… sorry." Was all she could choke out. She looked back down at her hands, ashamed to meet his gaze. How was it possible she had been so very, very wrong about everything?

Mistakes she had made over the past year hit her with realizations. The end of last summer was the beginning of her downfall, she now knew. Her affair with Dean… then the no-strings thing… the yacht… the fights with her mom… it was too much. She needed to get out of there, away from Tristan. She didn't know how much longer she could keep her tears from falling. She had already embarrassed herself enough in front of Tristan.

Tristan looked over at her, his concern obvious. "Rory, whatever it is, I can help you, I underst-"

"I need to go." She cried, half panicking, as she jumped up, grabbing her purse. She needed to go, get away from him; to get away from the awful, awful way he made her feel. He made her see who she had become, and she didn't like it. Not one bit. She was who he used to be.

"Stay, please." He told her, standing up with her, grabbing her arm gently.

She shook her head, once again willing the tears to stay back. This time she couldn't stop a few stray tears from escaping. "Just let me go, I want to go." She cried, shaking slightly.

He nodded, realizing she was on the verge ofbreaking down, and not wanting her to do it in public. He knew she would hate that. "We'll go."

She nodded in response, at this point desperate to have some privacy for the tears no longer under her control. She knew he had a million questions, and she knew he wouldn't think twice about asking them, but for now, she didn't care. She just wanted to go.

* * *

AN: Thanks for all the reviews, I really appreciate them! Ok, ok, I know, you hate me. I didn't really get into the whole Lorelai/ Rory deal in this chapter. I wrote most of this chapter witha huge argument/ confrontation with Rory & Tristan, but then deleted it. I thought it would be good to have Rory realize her mistakes on her own... with a little gentle prodding from Tristan. I have a longer AN at my blog, answering a couple of things that have been mentioned in various reviews. Please let me know what you think! 


	6. Goodbyes

**AN:** Thank you all so much for the wonderful reviews! I appreciate them all! Sorry it took me so long to get this chapter out. I rewrote it a few times, and I'm pretty happy with how it is. Let me know what you think!

* * *

Chapter 6

Two days had passed since she talked to Tristan. Thankfully, he dropped her off at her dorm and didn't press her for details. She had left her room only to go to classes, avoiding both her family and Logan.

Emily had left her several messages about getting together for making wedding plans. To be honest, she didn't care if Emily wanted to plan the whole damn thing on her own. She didn't want to get married, and she didn't want to spend the rest of her free time bogged down with planning what she was now oh-so lovingly referring to as the union from hell.

Currently, Rory was sitting on her bed, trying to write an article for YDN. She had her cell phone turned off and was screening all her calls.

A knock at the door finally forced her to get up, grumbling. "I'm coming, I'm coming." She muttered, annoyed.

"What?" She snapped, swinging the door open.

"I missed you too, Ace." Logan replied, the sarcasm evident in his voice. "Where have you been the last couple days?"

"Logan… hey… come in." She said, not meeting his gaze.

He followed her over to the couch and stared at her. He could tell something was off. He knew that she was under a lot of stress with her family and this whole arranged marriage deal.

"What's wrong?" He asked her, reaching out and taking her into his arms.

He frowned slightly when she pulled away, shaking her head no. "Ace?"

Rory stood up and walked to her room, returning almost instantly with several pieces of paper. "Here." She told him, handing him the documents.

He glanced over them, not liking what he saw. "And this is…"

"That is what we can change in the contract. Apparently, that's all we can change. Actually, we'll be lucky to change everything on that list."

Logan dropped the papers onto the coffee table, putting his head in his hands. "And by 'we', you mean…" He trailed off, already knowing the answer.

"I mean Tristan and me." She told him, sitting back down beside him.

Neither of them said anything for a few long moments. They simply sat and stared blankly at the documents on the coffee table in front of them. Finally, Rory couldn't take the silence any longer.

"What am I supposed to do?" She whispered, looking at Logan and trying not to cry.

Logan looked into her eyes and dried a tear that fell. He shook his head, looking at her sadly. "You're supposed to do what you have to do… for you." He told her, wrapping his arms around her. This time she didn't resist.

"I do love you, Ace." He said, not even realizing he was about to say it until the words were already out.

Rory looked up in shock, opening her mouth. Logan shook his head and placed a finger on her lips, not letting her speak. "Don't say anything; just listen."

He took a deep breath before continuing. "I know I've never said it to you before, I just, I wanted you to know. Yeah, my timing sucks." He paused, looking down. "But, that's why I have to walk away… I love you, and I know you'll regret it forever if you lose everything by staying with me."

Logan stood up and pulled Rory up with him.

"I love you, too. I really do." She told him as her heart broke.

"I know Ace, I know." He kissed her sweetly before pulling away. He gave her a sad smile.

She leaned in and threw her arms around his neck, laying her head on his chest, sobbing softly. "I really don't want to lose you."

"I don't want to lose you, either." He whispered, kissing her hair as he ran it through his fingers, possibly for the last time.

She looked up into his cocoa colored eyes and saw pain there, mirroring her own. She kissed him, slowly at first. They both poured their desperation into the kiss, hoping, pleading, that somehow something would change. Walking slowly together, their lips never parting, they went to her room. He kicked the door closed behind them and laid her on the bed.

-GG-

A while later Rory laid in Logan's arms, tears still on her face. "I don't want you to go." She whispered, her fingers lacing with his.

"Me neither… but if I don't go soon, I don't know how I'll ever let go of you."

She nodded, trying not to let anymore tears fall. "If you have to go, then go. I understand."

He pulled away slightly, looking into her eyes. "Ace, I want you to know that even though you have to do this…" He couldn't say 'get married,' it left a bitter taste in his mouth, and felt so wrong after they made love. He wouldn't say the dreaded 'M' word. He paused; looking into her teary eyes, and took a deep breath before continuing, this time stroking her cheek, "If you ever, ever need anything, please come to me. I'll be there for you no matter what. I'll always love you Ace."

He closed his eyes, leaving one more lingering kiss on her lips before getting up to get dressed. "Bye, Ace."

Rory laid on her bed, watching as the man she loved walked out the door, out of her life. "Bye Logan." She whispered, fighting tears until she heard the front door shut, signaling Logan's removal from her life.

Once he was on the other side of the door he leaned back against it, shutting his burning eyes tightly. "Bye Ace." He whispered. For the first time in his life, Logan Huntzberger knew what it was to be broken hearted. _'It's sucks.' _He thought as he trudged back to his dorm where massive amounts of alcohol awaited him.

-GG-

Rory woke up the next morning with a heavy heart. She had spent the previous night wallowing with Paris and watching Willy Wonka. While Paris had started to do her duties as a friend last night, sitting through the movie and ordering take out, she had also let her know in no uncertain terms what she thought…

"_Rory, I know it hurts, and wallowing is ok for now..." Paris began, trying to summon up some sympathy for her friend. She had never been good at the sympathy deal, but Terrance had told her that she needed to be there for Rory during the whole wedding issue. _

"_But…" Rory prodded her, having known Paris long enough to know that the girl had a point. _

"_But, you need to decide what you want, and you need to do it quick." Paris told her, being her usual blunt self._

"_What are you talking about? I don't get to decide what I want. I'm being forced into a loveless marriage, what more is there to decide?" Rory asked, stabbing a piece of General Tao's Chicken. _

"_You're going to lose everything if you don't get your act together!" Paris yelled, taking an egg roll. _

"_Oh, yeah, like I already haven't lost everything." _

"_You are the most obtuse person I've ever known. You have a great family, a family that actually loves you. And you're just pushing everyone away over nothing!" _

"_It's not over nothing! They pushed me away! They broke Logan and me up!" Rory retorted, slamming her takeout carton on the coffee table and fully facing Paris now._

_Paris rolled her eyes. "Yeah, and he was just such a great influence on you." Paris sighed, standing up and moving over to her bedroom. Before going in, she turned around. _

"_I care about you; you're one of my only real friends. You've dealt with all my drama over the years. Just know that if you don't get your act together and decide what you want you're not going to be left with anything. You've pushed your family completely away. Yeah, you're getting married against your will to Tristan. It could be worse. At least he cares about you, and he's not just some stranger who is only after the Gilmore and Hayden fortunes." _

_With that, Paris had walked into her room, leaving a shocked Rory behind. _

After her conversation with Paris, Rory had a difficult time falling asleep. Tristan's words had been haunting her since their discussion at the café. Her talk with Paris last night had only made her feel worse. Rolling out of bed, she made a decision.

She hurriedly gathered her clothes and got ready for her day. Once she was ready, she picked up her phone and dialed the number Tristan had given her when he dropped her off.

"Hello." Tristan answered on the first ring.

"Umm… hey, it's Rory." She said, biting her lip.

"Rory, hey." He said, surprised. He honestly hadn't expected her to call him after her break down in front of him the other day. He had half expected not to see or hear from her until she was being dragged kicking and screaming down the aisle.

"Are you busy? I was thinking we could talk, in person, if that's ok."

"Yes. Uh, no. I mean, No, I'm not busy, and yes, we can talk in person." He told her as he banged his head on the wall in his room. _'Idiot…'_ he thought to himself, feeling stupid for babbling.

"What?" She yelled, shocked.

It was only at the tone of her voice that he realized he had said 'Idiot' out loud, instead of thinking it.

"NOT YOU! I was… just… not you. I didn't mean you're an idiot."

There was silence from both ends of the line, so Tristan decided to speak up.

"Where do you want to meet? Do you want to talk at your dorm? That way it's in private?"

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea." She told him. "Just come by whenever you're ready."

"I'll be there in twenty minutes. See you then." He said, hanging up.

Hanging up the phone, Rory sat on her bed. She had twenty minutes to figure out what the hell she was going to say to him when he got there.


	7. Foofy Yellow Dresses

**AN:** Thank you all for the wonderful reviews! I am sooo sorry it took so long! I promise to get at least one more chapter of this done some time this week. Oh, and yes, chapter 6 was Logan's exit. He will no longer be a factor for Trory. I just wanted to give them a happier parting than I usually do. If he's in this at all, it will be as a friend to her. Happy reading!

* * *

**Chapter 7**

Rory paced through the room. Tristan would be there any minute. She really didn't know what she was going to say to him. They had a lot to get sorted, and she had a lot she needed to explain to him. He was right; he shouldn't have to go into this mess without knowing everything that was wrong in her life. If this was going to work- and apparently they had no choice but to make it work- then they needed to get to know each other. They needed to get along.

Three short knocks broke into her thoughts. She hurried over to the door, and taking a deep breath, opened it.

"Hey." She said, moving aside so he could come inside.

"Hey." He replied, putting his hands in his pockets, "So… you wanted to talk?"

Rory nodded. "Yeah, would you like something to drink? Coke, water?"

"Water's fine."

Rory got their water's and walked over to the couch, motioning for him to follow her. She took a breath, slowly letting it out.

"I'm sorry."

Tristan turned to look at her in mild confusion. "About?"

"The other day. I was rude, and I freaked… and I'm sorry." She said, lowering her eyes. She was ashamed of her behavior, not only for the other day, but in general. She had become someone she didn't even recognize anymore, and she didn't like it. Tristan's presence in her life, along with their current situation woke her up. She knew she needed to grow up, and fast.

"Hey, we all have our freak out moments…" He smiled, his eyes twinkling, "Just be glad yours didn't include a safe."

She groaned, "Nope… my major freak out moment included stealing a yacht."

"The whole probation thing?" He asked, remembering mention of it made amidst the yells and screams thrown back and forth between Lorelai and Rory.

Rory put her hands in her head. "It's kinda embarrassing to talk about."

Tristan gently removed her hands from her face, lifting her chin up to look at him. "Hey, listen, I know all about embarrassments. Imagine being in high school and having to tell the girl you're in love with that your major freak out moment is getting you sent to military school." He shook his head at the memory. Not one of his finer moments. It humbled him.

Rory looked at him in confusion. "Summer said she didn't know where you went."

Tristan met her gaze in astonishment. It was good to know same things never changed. He started laughing, looking away from her curious eyes. He shook his head. "Not Summer."

"Who then?"

He laughed again. "You always were so oblivious, Mar."

She smiled at the use of her old nickname, still waiting for an answer.

"You were the only one I talked to that night. You were the only one I told where I was going." He answered her honestly, watching as her eyes widened in shock.

"Me?" She squeaked in shock. "You were in love with me?"

Tristan nodded. "Yes, Mar, I was in love with you in high school. God, you always were so oblivious. I don't think a piano or a safe falling on you head would have even helped. Lord knows I tried everything I could think of to get your attention."

Rory decided to respond to him honestly, as he had done for her. "You did."

"I did what?" He questioned her.

She smiled slightly. "You got my attention. Of course, the thing that made me realize I maybe, kinda, sorta had and itsy bitsy teensy crush on you was you being sent away. Perfect timing DuGrey, really." She teased, her eyes sparkling.

Tristan smirked. "I always knew you couldn't resist me." He joked.

She groaned. "And there we have it folks, the infamous DuGrey ego I was just waiting to see surface."

"Hey, I can have an ego from time to time, and even you have to admit it's not as huge as it used to be." Tristan defended.

"That is true." She conceded, smiling.

The door opened just as Tristan was about to say something else, and Paris walked in.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't the loving couple." Paris said, walking to stand in front of them. "So when are the nuptials?"

Rory glared at her.

"Gellar." Tristan greeted. He turned to Rory. "You know, _hon,_ maybe you should make Paris a bridesmaid."

Rory met his eyes, "Yeah, I was thinking foofy taffeta, maybe some puffy sleeves… ooohhh…. Yellow."

"I hate you both." Paris muttered, storming into her room and slamming the door shut behind her.

They waited until the door was shut before laughing.

"I seriously do want her to be a bridesmaid though." Rory said, trying not to laugh.

Tristan shrugged, "Hey, they're forcing us into this, I say we do whatever we can to piss them off. I mean, I know their hearts are in the right places, but still…"

Rory snorted, "They're not thinking with their hearts. They're thinking with their stock portfolios."

"That is true." He admitted.

"Come on, we can discuss this elsewhere. If Paris thinks I'm serious about the yellow foofy taffeta and puffy sleeves she might come out with a machete."

"She has one?" He questioned, raising his eyebrows quizzically and looking slightly fearful.

"Do you really put it past her? Cause if you want to find out, feel free to stay. I however, want my limbs intact. But really, _dear,_ feel free to make yourself at home. I think she has some special blood removing cleaners in the closet, so any trace of you will be gone by the time I come back."

Tristan laughed, following Rory out the door.

"Where exactly are we going?" He asked her, walking beside her now.

She shrugged. "Do you want some lunch?"

"I could eat."

"Well… the pub actually has good food. Do you mind going there?" She asked, turning to look at him.

"Not at all." He replied, following her towards the pub.

They continue to chat amicably as they strolled towards the pub. He opened the door for her, ever the gentleman, and she entered, before stopping. She stood deathly still, then grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the pub.

"We can't eat here." She said, looking at her feet.

Tristan looked at her in confusion, but saw the look on her face, so he nodded. "Where to, then?"

"Come on, I know a burger place around here. It's pretty good." She said, pulling him away from the pub. She walked away from the pub, away from Logan who was sitting at a table with Colin, picking at lunch.


	8. Bonding

Chapter 8

Rory was silent and Tristan had no idea what was wrong. She stabbed a french fri into her ketchup before setting the fri back down.

"Ok, so what gives?" He questioned her, setting his own burger down.

She looked up at him, sighing. "I guess I should just go ahead and tell you… you'll have to know eventually I suppose."

Tristan waited for her to continue.

"Logan and I broke up yesterday."

"Logan being the boyfriend your family hates?"

Rory rolled her eyes, "If they've mentioned anything about him in front of you the words 'hellion' or 'pitchfork' were probably used."

Tristan laughed. "What did he do to deserve such a great reputation with your family?"

"He kinda stole the yacht with me." She admitted quietly.

"Ah." Tristan said, nodding his head slightly. "Who's idea was it?"

"Huh?"

"The yacht… who's idea?"

"Mine, but no one believes me."

Tristan smiled at her. "Of course no one believes you Mar. You're the sweet, innocent Virgin Mary from Chilton. Now you're the Gilmore's pride and joy at Yale. It's much easier for everyone to believe that Logan's the big bad wolf who caused you to turn bad rather than to think you would do something so bad of your own free will." He pushed his plate to the side.

"Now what does that have to do with your sudden bad mood? You were ok earlier."

"He was at the pub." She answered him, meeting his eyes.

"Ok."

"Ok? Like, ok-ok, as in more questions ok?" She asked him in disbelief.

"Yeah, why would I push you about it?"

"Because everyone always pushed me about issues."

"Not me. Now, are you going to make Paris a bridesmaid?" He asked her, turning the conversation in another direction, much to her relief.

She grinned. "Yes… but I figured a little torture was in order. Maybe get a foofy yellow dress and make her try it on."

"Basically, think bad 80's movie with a wedding?" Tristan smirked.

"Exactly." She nodded.

Rory bit her lip, silent for a moment. "We're really going to have to go through with this, aren't we?" She asked him, looking as he nodded grimly.

-GG-

Twenty minutes later they were walking side by side through a park. Neither spoke a word. They were too lost in their own thoughts.

Rory tugged at Tristan's hand, bringing him towards a bench near a water fountain to sit with her.

"So, tell me about you." She said, turning towards him to look into his icy blue eyes.

"What do you want to know?" He asked her, shrugging.

She smiled. He had changed so much. Before, in high school, had she made the same request he would have made some sort of lewd remark, laced with innuendo. This Tristan was a nice, refreshing change.

"How did you go from spoiled Chilton king to the man you are now?" She asked him, her tone slightly teasing so she wouldn't offend him.

He sighed. "Well, let's see. I got shipped off to military school. That sucked. Really, really bad. I met Jason Border, my best friend, there." He paused, thinking back to a few years ago. "I realized I hated the person I had become. I was a spoiled brat. I got anything and everything I wanted, and I didn't care how I got it… as long as the end result was what I wanted, then any means necessary was worth it. You know what I mean?"

He paused, and she nodded, encouraging him to continue.

"Anyway, military school gave me a chance to change and become someone I could be proud of. It changed my perspective of the world. I'm no where near the person I used to be. I used to hate my dad… now he is one of my best friends. I respect him."

Rory was silent as he spoke. When he talked about his dad being his best friend she felt a sharp pang to her heart. She used to talk that way about her relationship with her mother.

"How did that happen?" She asked him, her voice quiet.

"Something Jason said to me one time. He always gave out great advice. He said I should put myself in my dad's shoes… look at it from his perspective before I judged his parenting techniques. So I did. I thought about it. My dad didn't want to send me away. He was simply at the end of his rope. He knew he couldn't handle me anymore, and that if he couldn't, then he needed me to go somewhere where they could… and it worked."

"Wow. But… if you're so close… then why are you being roped into this?" Rory asked him, confusion on her face.

"I wish I knew." He shrugged, putting his head in his hands. "I've argued until I'm blue in the face." He looked up at her. "I haven't lived in Hartford in a while. Not since I went to North Carolina. I graduated Duke last year, since I took a lot of AP classesand summer courses. My dad thinks if I come back here left to my own devices, I'll revert back to who I used to be."

"Doesn't that make you mad? I mean, this is ridiculous!" She exclaimed, shaking her head in disbelief.

"Look, you're preaching to the choir here. But there's not much I can do. If I don't go through with this, then I lose everything that comes with my inheritance. The money I don't care about."

"Then why do this?" She questioned him.

"Because I lose something more important to me. I lose the family business. My great-great-great Grandfather DuGrey founded it… it only goes to me if I go through with this. If not, it goes to my cousin Ernie, who has made no small secret of the fact he would sell it off." Tristan admitted to her.

"So you're handing over your life to save the family business?" Rory huffed, folding her arms in front of her.

Tristan let out a groan, frustrated. "It's not just a business to me, Mar… you need to understand… I'm not any happier with this situation than you are… but I can't just let everything the DuGrey's have worked for over 100 years for just… fall down. You know? I mean… my family has money, yes. But I can't allow our company to be sold off just because… that's my family history. I can't let that happen, and I'll do whatever it takes to stop it from happening."

Tristan stopped speaking and looked at her. "Believe me when I say I am no happier with this situation than you are. I hope you don't blame me for this situation. But if you do, there's nothing I can do about that. Just understand where I'm coming from in this."

Rory looked down at her hands and then back up to him. "I don't blame you. At least your reasons for going through with this aren't selfish. I just want to get an education, that's why I need my money. At least your reason has to do with family loyalty."

"Hey, hey, you're not selfish." Tristan chided her, standing up and holding his hand out to her.

She looked at him with a 'yeah, right' look, taking his hand and standing.

"Really, Mar. There's no one I'd rather be roped into a loveless arranged marriage with." He teased her as they walked along with park path.

She laughed, "Gee, thanks."

"Anytime."

"So, even though you're close with your folks, are you up for a little revenge?"

"Revenge?" He questioned her, raising an eyebrow.

She grinned. "Just the kind that will make them very, very uncomfortable."

Tristan laughed at her, "Do tell."

* * *

**AN:** Thanks for all the reviews! I just wanted to explain a few things real quick. This is a Trory. That's a firm answer, no conditions. Also, right now I'm just trying to set a Trory relationship up. Have them bond, have them get to know each other. They're not going to suddenly be madly in love... they will be friends first. Thanks for reading! 


	9. Meetings

AN: I am so sorry you guys! School & real life totally got in the way, so I haven't had a chance to actually write. Not to mention, I've been so stressed I couldn't calm down enough to write. Thanks for all the reviews, and I hope you enjoy this chapter!

Also, the revenge will start to come out in the next chapter.

* * *

Rory scurried around her dorm to dress. She and Tristan had been up late the night before going over their plans for today. Her stomach growled though she ignored it. She didn't have time to eat, she needed to finish putting her hair up. Tristan was going to be there any minute. 

Today was the day they were scheduled to go to a meeting with their families. The prenuptial agreements would be signed. It was literally the end of their lives as they knew it, and they were not about to go down without a fight.

She hurried up and put her earrings in, grabbing for her heels just as she heard a knock on the door.

-GG-

Tristan knocked on Rory's dorm promptly at 10:30 Wednesday morning. It was almost two full weeks since their day in the park. They had used their time wisely. Meetings had occurred and documents were drawn up. They planned, plotted, argued and fought. They finally came to an agreement.

Rory opened the door, greeting Tristan with a tense smile as she grabbed for her folder and purse.

"Are you ready for this?" He asked her as they started out the door towards his car.

She shot him a look. "Is anybody ever truly ready to go sign their futures over?"

"Yeah, well, according to our families…" He trailed off, shaking his head.

Several previous days were spent going over law books, talking with other lawyers. They searched and searched for a loop hole. They spent hours in the dusty back part of the Yale law library, going through old archives to find something to help them. Finally, they realized they exhausted their every option to get out of the contract. Simply put, the marriage was going to happen whether they liked it or not.

Once that realization had been met they quickly began going over every little detail of the contract with Andrew McCrae, who Tristan had officially hired to help them. They spent the remaining precious days they had scrambling to come up with their own stipulations to put into the contract. They figured if they couldn't get out of the situation they may as well put their marriage in their own terms as much as possible.

Once they were in the car Rory glanced at the time. "We need to hurry or we'll be late."

"Yes, Lord knows one wouldn't want to be late for an event such as this." He dryly replied.

She glanced at him sharply. "I don't want to go do this either, but if we don't then we won't have a chance to negotiate the terms. Do you really want to sign the papers as they drew them up, and spend the rest of our lives adhering to those terms?"

With that in mind Tristan stepped a little harder on the gas, hurrying them to the law offices of Durmbay and Klondike, where the meeting was scheduled to take place.

-GG-

Twenty minutes later Tristan and Rory walked into the large building to meet up with Andrew McCrae in the lobby.

"There you two are!" Andrew said, walking over.

"Sorry we're running late." Rory told him, smiling at him politely.

"It's no problem. You're here and you actually have a few minutes to spare. Now, do you both have your lists of terms? I have copies in case you forgot them. It will help to have them in front of you." Andrew said, nodding in recognition when they both held up their folders filled with documents. "Ok, well, if I know your families as well as I think I do, this is going to be a long day."

Tristan and Rory met eyes and nodded. They had expected it to be a long day.

"Are we ready to go in yet?" Colin asked, coming up to the group.

Rory looked at him with surprise evident on her face. "Colin? What are you doing here?"

Colin laughed at her. "Well, you know I'm assisting my dad lately, you know, helping out and learning this stuff. You know I've been assisting on your case."

She nodded. "Yeah, sorry, I just didn't know you'd be here. I've been busy lately."

Colin gave her a small hug. "Hey it'll be ok. Everything will be just fine."

She smiled at him, grateful for his attempt at comforting her. During the time she was with Logan she grew very close to both Colin and Finn.

Andrew cleared his throat, breaking up the sweet moment between the two friends.

"Are we all ready?" He asked, nodding towards the open door where the secretary stood.

Rory squeezed Tristan's hand, nodding. "We're ready."

-GG-

The four of them walked into the meeting room. None of their faces held a single trace of amusement.

To Rory and Tristan this was not just a game. They were certainly going to get some amount of satisfaction from annoying their families with the determination to hold this marriage and wedding on their own terms, but it was also more than that. They knew the results of the arrangements made today would be held over their heads for the rest of their lives.

Entering the room, Rory noted that her father, her grandfather, and Tristan's father and grandfather were all there, with their respective lawyers present.

"Andrew, what are you doing here?" Richard asked, noticing the four as soon as they came in the room.

"Hello gentlemen." Andrew greeted. "Mr. DuGrey and Miss. Gilmore here have asked for my legal representation and guidance in this matter." He explained, biting back a laugh at the looks of shock on the four other men's faces.

"My son here, Colin, will also be sitting in on this meeting."

"What is the meaning of this?" Edward DuGrey asked his son.

Tristan led Rory over to the table and pulled out a chair for her. "You all have your own lawyers here. Rory and I thought it would be in our best interests to have someone here to help us, as well." Tristan explained, his tone flat and cold. "Now shall we get down to business?"

The families shared shocked glances. Clearly, none of them expected either Tristan or Rory to be thinking clearly enough to hire a lawyer.

"Yes, let's get down to business." Janlan finally suggested, breaking the silence.

They all took their seats, each prepared for the long battle of wills that would occur over the next few hours.

-GG-

Three hours later stomachs were grumbling, schedules had been cleared, ties were loosened and shirt sleeves were rolled up.

"You two are making this extremely difficult." Edward gritted out between clenched teeth. His patience had been shot over an hour ago.

"You could all make this very simple for us, dad." Tristan reminded his father, pointing to the list he had written on yellow legal paper.

Edward huffed. "And hell is going to freeze over."

Rory sighed, rubbing her temples. Everyone in the meeting room had been at odds since they sat down. Rory and Tristan, along with Colin and Andrew's help and advice, were going tit for tat. They refused to budge on any of their lists of demands for the prenups.

Rory and Tristan were arguing on every possible point in the lengthy documents. They didn't want to give up any ground in the papers, knowing that the results decided in that very room would continue to follow them forever.

Currently, they were arguing over the amount of social events Rory and Tristan would be required to throw every year in order to come into one of the trusts. Their families were smart. They were very, very smart. Rather than just putting demands in the documents, they held onto everything with money.

For instance, monthly family dinners were in exchange for one trust fund. Vacations were controlled by yet another account. The lists went on and on.

Rory shook her head, listening as Tristan and his father had a heated discussion. Finally, she could take it no more.

"Stop! Just stop!" She pleaded, grabbing the aspirin bottle someone had left on the table and shaking a few onto the palm of her hand.

Realizing she had everyone's attention, she quickly swallowed the pills with a drink of the water that had long ago been brought into the room.

"I need food." She informed everyone, her grumbling stomach accentuating her point.

Richard nodded, his own stomach feeling rather empty. "Shall we have some food ordered in?" He asked the rest of the men at the table.

Everyone nodded in consensus.

"I could go for an egg roll." Chris voiced, having skipped breakfast that morning to make sure he wasn't late for the meeting.

-GG-

A half hour later the group was spread across the room, munching on Chinese as they tried to relieve a little stress before continuing the grueling process.

"So, how do you think it's going so far?" Tristan whispered his question to Rory before he took a large bite of lo mein.

She shrugged, stabbing a piece of general tao's chicken. "Well, we got them to go down on their demands of weekly family dinners. Now they're just monthly. I think that's the biggest thing so far."

He nodded in agreement. "Yeah… but I don't want to have to throw a social event every month, either."

"God no!" She responded, feeling the urge to beat her head on the heavy oak table until she forgot about everything.

Rory went to reach for a soda but an already opened soda can was quickly thrust into her hands. She shot Colin a confused look but he just winked and shook his head.

She went to take a sip of it, smelling the alcohol it was laced with. Rory jerked her head over to look at Colin in surprise, but he just grinned, discreetly lifting his flask up for her to see.

As Janlan and Richard suggested they get back to the meeting, she leaned over towards Colin.

"Bless you." She whispered, to which he bit back a laugh.

Tristan looked at her, not understanding what was so funny. She pushed the can into his hands, motioning for him to drink. Taking a sip, he grinned. Maybe they would make it through this meeting after all.


	10. Yellow

Chapter 10- Yellow

Tristan groaned as he rolled over to beat his alarm clock into silence. Usually he was a morning person. Being in military school did that. He had no problem being up by 5:30 and running three miles before returning home to shower and start his day. Of course, usually he hadn't walked through hell and met with the devil the day before.

After they took a much needed break for food the meeting continued. And continued. And continued. There was a point when Tristan honestly thought it would never end. But then, many, many hours after they started, they miraculously came to an agreement. _Thank God!_

Tristan, Rory, and Colin made plans to go out for drinks, but the joy of being free from the meeting was short lived. As soon as Tristan and Rory turned on their cell phones they received their voice mails. His was from his mom; hers from Emily.

They were making wedding plans.

The mere thought of their families planning their wedding freaked them both out. Yes, they realized they were engaged to be married. Yes, they realized that the torturous meeting ended with them signing their prenup and various other documents. Still, actually planning said wedding the very next day was different.

They ended up deciding not to go out for drinks, but to just go to their own homes instead. Colin left, and Rory went to her dorm while Tristan went to his apartment.

Groaning once more Tristan rolled out of bed, deciding a run was much needed. Though his body protested due to the lack of sleep the night before, he knew it would be good for his stress level. Donning a pair of sweats, t-shirt, and Nikes he left the apartment. He needed to clear his head before he had to deal with more family.

-GG-

Six and a half hours later Tristan and Rory walked into the Gilmore mansion together. Neither one wanted to be there, but they were told they needed to arrive at noon to start going over the wedding plans. That was the last thing Rory wanted to do, but at least she would have a chance to extract a little revenge. It would be fun seeing their faces when she told them just what, exactly, she wanted for her wedding.

"Come in, come in! Everyone is here already! Let's get started!" Emily beamed, walking into the living room.

Rory turned to Tristan, who had a puzzled look on his face.

"I don't think I've ever seen her quite so… happy."

Rory shook her head. "That, my friend, was not a good sign. She's happy. When Emily Gilmore is happy everyone else is miserable. Trust me, not a good sign at all."

Tristan grimaced, following her out to the patio where several women were seated.

"Mother, Lorelai, Francine." Tristan greeted politely while Rory merely gave a fake smile. She wasn't happy and wouldn't think twice about telling them. She had no intention to make their lives any easier. After all, most of the people gathered in the room were directly responsible in ruining her life.

"Who are they?" Rory asked, looking pointedly at a blonde and a brunette sitting together on the sofa with large binders in their laps.

"Well, this is your wedding planner, and this is your assistant." Olivia beamed at her future daughter-in-law.

"My assistant." Rory repeated, sitting down next to Tristan, her only ally in the room. "Of course." She mumbled under her breath.

Looking around the room she felt anger. Anger at her mother for causing this. Anger at her grandmother for finally getting along with her mother- only to plot ways to ruin her life. And anger at Francine for showing up for the first time in her life just to try and control her.

Perhaps her relationship with her mother had been fixable before. Before, it was strained. But now, as far as Rory was concerned, it was shattered. She could never forgive her mother for this.

As if reading her thoughts Tristan took her hand and squeezed it in his own.

"It'll be okay, just think of the looks on their faces when you tell them what kind of a wedding you want." He whispered, trying to get her to smile.

He knew today was tough on them both. But it was already straining Rory. Hopefully they would be able to make it through the planning today without a blow up. He was hoping, but he certainly wasn't holding his breath.

"Hi, I'm Jasmine. I'll be your assistant. I'll make any calls you need, and just help you during this time." The brunette said, smiling perkily.

"We thought it would help you." Francine added, hoping to smooth things over.

"Well, let's get down to things, shall we?" Emily asked, picking up her tea cup.

"Yes, certainly." Olivia spoke up.

Karyn, the wedding planner, opened her binder. "The wedding will be in two months, correct?" She asked, looking around the table at the couple.

Rory shrugged, rolling her eyes.

Emily shot Rory a glare, before nodding. "Yes, two months from now."

"Now, who will be the groomsmen, and who will be the bridesmaids?" The petite blonde asked, looking over at Tristan and Rory once more.

"Paul, Jason, and Greg." Tristan told her, no hesitation apparent in his voice.

"And who will be the best man?"

"Jason."

The blonde nodded, making a quick note and turned towards Rory. "And for the bride?" She asked, smiling.

Rory hesitated for a moment. "Paris…" Rory said, then trailed off. Lane was on tour, so she was out of the question. The tour was for the entire summer. There was no way she would be back in time. Rory knew if she asked Lane she would come home, but the tour was good for her. She couldn't ask that of her friend.

Stephanie had become a close friend of hers recently, but she didn't want to put the girl in an awkward situation. There was always Madeline and Louise, who Rory had stayed in contact with over the years as well. "I'll get back to you on that."

"Rory, this is really important." Francine said, setting her tea cup down.

"I will get back to you on it." Rory replied, narrowing her eyes and glaring.

"Ok, next." Karyn said, trying to get the conversation to move on. "Colors?"

"Oh, I thought a beautiful blue would be lovely!" Emily jumped in.

"Yes, it would look just darling with her eyes!" Olivia agreed.

"This, I actually have an answer to." Rory told them, smirking. "Yellow."

Tristan coughed to cover up his laugh while the women at the table looked at Rory strangely.

"Yellow?" Karyn asked, to be sure she heard correctly.

"Yes, I think Paris would look just darling in a yellow bridesmaid dress." Rory answered while Tristan burst out laughing.

If she was going to be put through the torture of getting married to someone she didn't love she was going to torture everyone else just as much.

-GG-

"I thought we were never going to get out of there." Tristan sighed as they finally left the mansion several hours later.

Rory nodded in agreement. "That was painful."

"Yeah, but did you see the look on their faces when you suggested the Adams Family theme song for the wedding march?" Tristan laughed as he led her to the car.

"I thought Francine would have a heart attack right then and there." She agreed, getting into the car.

"Oh, and then when they refused and you suggest Highway to Hell?"

"Hey, that would at least be truthful!" Rory defended, trying not to laugh. "And you were the one who insisted they hear it! You actually ran out to the car for the CD."

"So, how mad do you think Paris is going to be when she finds out you are sticking her in a yellow dress?"

Rory smiled. "I don't really intend to put her in yellow. I'm just going to make everyone think I am. About two weeks before the wedding I'll change my mind. They'll be so relieved that they won't kill me for changing the wedding colors two weeks before hand."

"You, Rory Gilmore, are evil. How did I ever think you were so innocent back in high school?" Tristan asked, glancing away from the road for a second.

They continued to make small talk until they arrived back at Yale. Rory smiled at Tristan once they arrived at her door.

"I should tell you, that was the best time I've ever had planning a wedding I'm forced into."

Tristan laughed. "I suppose I should take that as a compliment."

"I'll see you later." She responded, smiling onelast time andwalking in her dorm and shutting the door.

Tristan shook his head before walking back to the car. Rory Gilmore was constantly surprising him. She had changed, but he was starting to like the new her at times.

* * *

**AN:** Sorry about the long wait! Things have been crazy, and I haven't been able to write much lately. Thanks for reading! 


	11. Bridesmaids

**AN:** Sorry I haven't updated in forever! Yes, this is a short chapter, but I know what's going to happen in the next chapter, and I needed to update this for you guys. Thanks for all the reviews, I really do appreciate them. And once again, I'm terribly sorry for not updating sooner!

* * *

Chapter 11 

Rory struggled to balance all the books and binders in her arms as she hurried through the building in incredible need of a caffeine fix. She was laden not only with school books and school notes, but also wedding things.

The binder currently in her arms held a trillion different yellow swatches of fabric. It was her mission to pick the most repulsive yellow she could, and have three bridesmaids dresses, along with a flower girl dress made with that fabric. Of course, she also needed to pick three bridesmaids.

She saw the coffee stand in the distance and hurried to it. Coffee- her savior! Just before she reached it, she was cruelly stopped.

"'Ello love. Coffee?" The person asked, holding out a large cup of her favorite coffee to her.

She took it without question, savoring the wonderful taste as it floated along her tongue. "Finn, I love you." She murmured, already feeling somewhat refreshed.

Finn grinned, "I knew it! I bloody knew it! Unfortunately, I think you have enough on your plate right now and can't handle a side of Australian to go along with it."

Rory nodded with him. "Yeah, I need to get back to my dorm and decide who two of my bridesmaids are going to be."

"What about that lovely drummer friend of yours?" Finn asked, walking along with her.

"Lane's on tour."

"Stephanie?"

Rory sighed, "I really, really don't want to put her in that position."

"What position?" Finn asked as a frown came across his face.

The break up between Logan and Rory was not one that ended terribly, from what they were told. There was no bitterness between Logan and Rory, and even if there had been everyone still considered Rory a close friend. Sure, things would be a bit awkward with hanging out in a group once she was married, but she was still their friend.

"You know, the whole his friends, my friends, our friends thing." She answered, taking another sip.

She opened her door and walked into the room, sitting on the couch. Finn remained standing with his arms crossed.

"No, love, I don't know what you're talking about. If you think that just because Logan and you are no longer together we're not going to be here for you, then you're sadly mistaken." He informed her, walking over to her alcohol cabinet and helping himself.

"But he needs you guys." Rory said, grabbing a binder from the stack and opening it.

Finn walked over and sat next to her. "And we're there for him. But you need us too, and we're not about to abandon you. Get used to it, you're stuck with us."

Rory smiled. "Thanks Finn."

"Anytime. Now, what's this about needing a bridesmaid?" He asked, taking a shot.

"Two. I need two bridesmaids. Paris is going to be my maid of honor, but I'm not sure beyond that."

She pointed to the two blank spaces on the paper, under Paris' name. "We're trying to piss off our families with the plans. So far, we decided on yellow as a color for the wedding." She informed him, flipping through the binder.

"Want to really piss them off?" Finn asked, a devilish smiled crossing his face.

"Yes!"

"I'll be a bridesmaid. But really, yellow is not my color. Do you think we can do something about that?"

Rory started laughing, "Two weeks before the wedding the colors will change to blue. Better?"

"Much! So can I? Can I, can I, can I?" Finn begged, tugging at her arm.

"I can't have a man as my bridesmaid!" Rory told him, still laughing.

"Now wait, you were a best man, were you not?" Finn pointed out. He had heard all about the Gilmore's vow renewal from Logan.

Rory nodded, remembering the wedding. She sighed sadly. She missed Logan. "You can be a bridesmaid, Finn." She told him, leaning her head on his shoulder.

Finn looked down at her sad expression and wrapped an arm around her. The girl looked exhausted. It obviously hadn't been an easy couple weeks for her. "It'll all be okay love. It'll all be okay."

-GG-

Tristan knocked on the door. They had dinner plans so they could go over the wedding plans and get to know each other a bit better.

The door opened, but instead of Rory a tall dark haired man with black finger nail polish answered.

"May I help you?" The man asked with a noticeable accent.

"Yeah, Rory and I have dinner plans." Tristan told him, slightly confused.

"Oh, are you Tristan, the fiancé?"

Tristan nodded, still confused.

"Come on in, she's changing. I'm Finn. I'll be a bridesmaid in your wedding." Finn told him, grabbing what was left in the bottle of alcohol and taking it with him. "Well, I'm off. Bye."

With that, the man was gone.

Rory came out of her room in a pair of jeans and a low cut blue top that ended at her shoulders. He couldn't help but think how gorgeous she was.

"Ready?" She asked, slipping on a black sandal.

"Yeah, uh, who was the Australian?" Tristan asked, following her to the door as she grabbed her binder and purse off a table where her keys were.

"That was Finn. He's one of my bridesmaids." Rory said nonchalantly, thinking nothing of a man being a bridesmaid. "I'm starving, where are we going?"

Tristan shook his head as he followed her out to his car. It was hard keeping up with Rory Gilmore.

They chatted amicably on the drive to the restaurant. It seemed the mutual goal of pissing of their families had bonded them some, bringing them closer together.

Once they arrived at the seafood restaurant Tristan opened her door and led her to the restaurant, opening that door for her as well.

"Reservations for DuGrey." He told the hostess, who told him it would be just a few minutes.

The few minutes passed quickly and they were led to their table.

As Tristan pulled out her seat for her she sat down, her eyes widening when she saw who was sitting at the next table.

"Rory." The woman said, shocked to see her.

"Mother." Rory coldly returned, her body stiff.


	12. Confrontations

AN: Hey everyone! Thank you all so much for all the reviews. After such a long wait between chapters I really wasn't sure I would get very many! I hope this chapter explains a lot.

**Chapter 12**

A year ago no one would have ever thought the two Lorelai's, Stars Hollow's Gilmore Girls, would ever get to the point they were now at. To blame it solely on Lorelai or solely on Rory would be unfair. They both played parts in ruining their relationship, but neither could go back and fix it. They were each sure they were right.

After the Dean debacle they tried mending their relationship. It worked to an extent. They would have movie nights and spend time together, but they never quite replaced that rift. There was always a slight wall between the two. Over time they found ways to ignore that wall and function as if it didn't exist.

Then, the Male Yale party happened. Rory did the unthinkable: She came home drunk with a limo full of society boys. The elder Lorelai was not pleased. As Rory continued to grow close to Logan the previously functioning mother-daughter relationship started to feel more strain. Once Lorelai got wind of a "no strings" deal she began to voice her opinions.

Still, the girls were okay. Not great, but okay. Until the yacht.

When Rory was arrested Lorelai lost it. She began to interfere and protest. She did everything she possibly could to get Rory to leave Logan. That just pushed Rory further away from Lorelai, and closer to Logan.

There would be a coffee date on occasion, but it was always instigated by Luke. There were no more movie night, no more mocking; nothing. Instead of multiple phone calls every day the girls talked on the phone only when necessary. Even then, they yelled more than talked.

Finally, Lorelai couldn't handle it anymore. She rallied the support of her parents and Chris, and meddled. And now, the girls were not speaking. At all.

Rory blinked as she looked over at her mother, the woman who birthed her, and felt anger. Betrayl. Pain.

"Hi Rory, Tristan, would you two like to join us?" Luke asked, looking from mother to daughter and seeing neither one of them was too pleased.

Rory scoffed before Tristan had a chance to answer. "Actually, no. In fact, I think we'll just change tables."

"God Rory, you have become so spoiled." Lorelai spat, glaring at her daughter.

Rory let out a humorless laugh. "I'm spoiled? Please. You are the very epitome of spoiled."

"I am not! Besides, that's a mighty big accusation coming from the girl with a Birkin bag." Lorelai retorted.

"Please Mother. You pout and throw a fit the moment you don't get your way. You are spoiled, selfish, and prejudice and I for one am sick of it!" Rory hissed, being careful to keep her voice down in public, yet still portraying the extreme anger she was feeling.

"Um, maybe we should move to another table Rory." Tristan said, glancing at Luke who also didn't know what to do.

His suggestion was ignored.

"And here I hoped you would change back to who you used to be when you and Logan broke up." Lorelai shook her head.

Rory felt anger course through her veins at that remark. "I will never, never be the same person again. That naïve little girl I used to be thought that she could depend on you. I was obviously wrong about that, but don't worry, I won't be making that mistake twice. I will never forgive you for what you have done."

"I was doing what I thought was best!"

"And so did grandma when she tried to force you to marry dad when you were sixteen, yet you see how that turned out." Rory folded her arms in front of her.

"Don't compare me to Emily Gilmore! I am nothing like that woman!" Lorelai hissed, standing up and raising your voice.

"Uh, Lorelai-" Luke started, before being cut off.

"Lower your voice, you're drawing attention to us." Rory admonished, shaking her head.

"You have spent way too much time around Logan and those other society brats, you're acting just like them. God, Rory, can't you-"

"You criticize the way Logan and his friends are. You criticize their backgrounds and the way they were raised. Yet you were raised the same exact way." Rory pointed out, barely containing her temper. She wanted to scream. She couldn't handle Lorelai's one- sided views any longer.

"But I changed! I got out of Hartford."

"And you're marrying me into it. Isn't that funny? The thing you were most afraid of is something you pushed me into. You didn't want me to be with Logan because you were jealous that I was going places and experiencing new things without you. You saw him and high society as a threat, so you did the first thing you could. You forced me to marry Tristan. Yet we're going to be a high society couple in Hartford. Ironic, isn't it?" Rory pointed out, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. "In your fear and jealousy you pushed me strait into Hartford."

"Rory, that's diff-"

"Spare me." Rory held up a hand. "I don't care. I really don't. You and me, we're through. We're done. You're not my friend anymore. You're my mother. I'll see you whenever I run into you in public or something. But I will never be around you of my own free will. I despise you."

"Stop it, Ror-"

"No, you stop it. I'm done. We're done."

And with that, Rory walked off.

Tristan glanced around quickly before hurrying after her.

She looked up as he fell into step beside him. "I can't eat here. I hope you understand. Do you care if we go somewhere else?"

"Rory," He started, before being cut off.

"How about Chinese? Does that sound good to you?" She asked as they stepped outside. "I know a great place a couple miles from here. Amazing moo shoo pork."

"Rory, stop." Tristan said gently, grabbing her arms and spinning her around to face him.

He looked down at the tears streaming down her face and immediately folded her in his arms. She sobbed into his chest.

"How can she do this? How? How?" She questioned, shaking from the sobs.

Tristan didn't know what to say. So he just held her.


	13. Questions and Answers

BBB Chapter 13

To anyone who didn't know her she looked just like another beautiful, stupid, placid Stepford wife-to-be. Her hair and makeup were perfect. Her designer dress gorgeous, simply perfect for the event. Her fake polite smile perfectly in place. Yes, everything about Rory was perfect.

Too bad it was quickly eating her alive, sucking all the life out of her until she wanted to scream and run far, far away.

She nodded at the ladies talking to her about joining the Hartford Women's Auxiliary, not truly listening. She figured she would receive a call before long informing her of what she agreed to and what she was expected to do. What did it matter if she listened or not?

"Ah, there you are Ror, there's someone I want to introduce you to. You don't mind if I steal my lovely bride-to-be away from you, do you ladies?" Tristan asked, sweeping in to rescue her before she either committed suicide or homicide –he wasn't sure which but wasn't willing to take chances either way- with a cocktail fork from the shrimp tray.

It was the night of their engagement party. It was supposed to be one of the happiest nights of their lives. And it may have been. Had anything about it been real. Instead, they were both stuck looking into a stark reality of being married to someone they hadn't seen or heard from in years, and certainly didn't love.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you." She sighed in relief, sagging against Tristan as they walked through the crowded, eloquently decorated ball room of the Hartford Garden Pavilion (where both Edward and Richard were very large donators) and towards the patio, where they would hide in the shadows for as long as they possibly could without seeming rude.

"I needed out of there just as badly as you did. God, will this night ever end?" Tristan asked, shaking his head in frustration.

"Yep, and then we'll get to go pick out things for our wonderful, fairytale wedding and plan the honeymoon, then have the rehearsal dinner and the wed-"

He groaned in response, cutting her off before she could continue rattling off the different types of hell they would endure in the coming months. They approached a beautiful lit up water fountain in the center of the gardens, and Tristan took a seat on the edge. "Twenty questions," He said.

"What?"

"Twenty questions. You ask me ten, I ask you ten. And we get honest answers. You can go first."

Rory scrunched her forehead in slight confusion but complied, "Ok, what do you think about us being married?"

Tristan angled an 'are you kidding me?' look at her, but answered anyway, "We've already talked about this. I'm not looking forward to a loveless arranged marriage done entirely for business reasons. But-"

"There's a but?" She asked in confusion and bewilderment.

"Hey! Let me finish."

She nodded, "Sorry, continue."

He took a deep breath, "But, it could be worse. I could be getting married to Paris. Or to a Barbie wanna be who I wouldn't be able to speak to without my IQ dropping twenty points. At least you and I can forge a friendship of sorts. It may not ever be a great love of the ages, but at least we won't be hiring hit men to off the other one or pouring arsenic in each other's coffee."

Rory laughed lightly at that, thinking about what he just said. "True, true."

"Ok, now for you… do you think you and Logan would have gotten married eventually?" He really did want to know the answer. He was curious. He needed to know just how much pain she was in and what her mindset was going into this.

Rory sighed, looking away from the brilliant blue eyes that stared back at her. _Would she and Logan have eventually been married? _She loved Logan, she really, truly did. He gave her freedom and helped her stake her independence. Logan opened up her world to things she never would have experienced without his influence. He was loving towards her an affectionate, and even stood up to his family when it came to her. But would they have ever gotten married?

"I don't know." She answered honestly. "I like to think we would have. I think if it were up to him then someday, perhaps after college, we would have been. But it wouldn't have been up to him, even if my family weren't taking such drastic steps. I think at some point his father would have put his foot down about our relationship, made an ultimatum or two…" Rory's voice trailed off as the question ate at her from inside. "I guess it's just one of those things I'll always wonder about but never really know the answer to. What might have been."

"Fair enough." Tristan responded, nodding. It was an honest answer, and he appreciated that. If they were going to make this sham of a marriage work in anyway they needed total honesty.

"Have you ever been in love?" She posed the question, watching his face as he struggled with an answer.

They certainly weren't pulling any punches tonight. But he supposed that was the only way they were going to really get to know one another. Again. He drifted away in his memories for a moment, hesitating only slightly before answering. "Yes. Once. She was… perfect."

"What happened?" Rory asked quietly, watching as his face tightened.

He smirked, shaking his head lightly, fighting back the wave of memories. "She was sweet, to sweet for her own good actually. She wanted to help everyone and save the world. I met her the summer after I went away to military school. Her name was Sarah and she was from North Carolina. Lived in the area all her life. I met her that summer and things just developed. She changed me. And then one day, about eight months into our relationship she was volunteering at the community center- the one in the bad part of town- and was outside, playing soccer with the kids. And there was a drive by shooting… and she didn't make it out alive."

Tristan could still remember the way he heard about the drive by on tv, but didn't think anything of it. Sarah wasn't supposed to be at the center that day, but someone else couldn't come in so she volunteered. He didn't find that out until her father stopped by the school that night to tell him. He could still remember the raw pain in Robert's eyes as he told him that Sarah, sweet Sarah, was gone. He remembered watching as the former Marine fought so hard not to break down and bawl over losing his baby girl. He could still remember the sting of the antiseptic his platoon sergeant used when he cleaned and bandaged his bloody knuckles- knuckles that he bloodied by putting his fist through the first wall he saw.

"I… I don't know what to say. I'm sorry seems so… useless and stale. But I am." Rory softly told him, putting her hand on his shoulder and bringing him back to the present.

"It was a long time ago." He answered gruffly, clearing his throat and putting the memories back where they belonged- in the past.

They sat in silence for a few minutes, listening to the water cascade down the fountain and the crickets chirp. The tiny lights that were stung through the gardens illuminated the quiet couple who sat in the shadows away from the party.

"So, it's my turn, right?" He finally asked, breaking the silence.

She nodded, "Yep, ask away."

"Do you think you'll ever forgive your mom?"

Rory held her breath and she swore her heart stopped beating for just a second as she felt the sadness, pain and anger wash over. She opened her mouth to answer.

"Rory! Tristan! There you are! We're about to make a toast, we need you to get in here." Emily called to them, effectively ending their conversation.

Tristan stood up as Rory did and placed his hand on the small of her back, leading her back to their engagement party. As they walked towards Emily he couldn't help but wonder what her answer would have been.


End file.
